Live Streaming FootballAs a Bet365 customer you can watch live streaming football, horse racing, tennis & hockey etc. Live betting available for all sports! [+]

Get Free Bets for Football!Take advantage of these amazing promotions while it lasts. Now you can bet with the finest bookmakers and get the best deal on the Net. [+]

Hughes holds out Assaidi hope

Stoke City manager Mark Hughes is still hopeful of securing the services of Liverpool winger Oussama Assaidi on a permanent basis.

Assaidi spent last season on loan at the Britannia Stadium and enjoyed a relatively impressive campaign, the highlight of which came when he netted a spectacular strike to give Stoke a 3-2 win over Chelsea in December.

Hughes is keen to add another winger to his ranks, with Barcelona’s Bojan Krkic mooted as a potential transfer target.

However, a move for Assaidi has stalled due to issues over fitness and the club’s finances.

Stoke apparently want to be sure that a knee injury that kept Assaidi on the sidelines for much of the second half of the season has healed.

Liverpool’s reported asking price of £7million is also said to be a sticking point, but Hughes has not given up on recruiting the former Heerenveen man.

“We are where we are on that one,” Hughes told The Sentinel. “Ideally, if we can do something, then yes we will.

“He’s someone we know and someone we know can have an impact, so yes we would like to see if something can be done with Ossie.

“But obviously he isn’t our player and that means the ball is in Liverpool’s court.”

Hughes is pleased with the club’s business so far, which has seen Stoke bring in Mame Biram Diouf, Phil Bardsley, Steve Sidwell and Dionatan Teixeira.

And the former Manchester City and Fulham boss is eager to make further additions before the start of the new season next month.

“People are coming back from the World Cup, so things can move on quite quickly,” he added.

“We are still keen to add to the squad if the right quality at the right price is available.

“But we are in a good place because of the early work (four signings) already done.”